Essential Question: How can students, teachers, parents, and administrators measure changes in student reading fluency over time?
Summary:
Students will use the A-Z Learning Center Raz-Kids program to help build fluency skills. The students will select this activity as a component of the Cafe and Daily Five components for reading workshop. Students will listen to readers who read fluently. Students will record what they are reading and reflect upon it while using Raz-Kids on the student laptop computers. The students will take three samples of their fluency rate over the course of a trimester and graph the data either electronically by means of Excel bar graphs, or in an hard copy student portfolio containing bar graphs. They will have the opportunity to reflect upon their fluency rate growth by journal entry through word processing software or a reading reflection journal. Students can optionally pair up with another reading buddy and reflect upon and compare changes in reading fluency over time.
Objectives
CC.RF.4.: Reading Standards: Foundational Skills
: Phonics and Word Recognition
RF.4.3.: Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.
RF.4.3(a): Use combined knowledge of all letter-sound correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology (e.g., roots and affixes) to read accurately unfamiliar multisyllabic words in context and out of context.
: Fluency
RF.4.4.: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
RF.4.4(a): Read on-level text with purpose and understanding.
RF.4.4(b): Read on-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.
RF.4.4(c): Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
What 21st Century Skill Objectives does this activity/Lesson include?
communication
collaboration
problem solving
critical thinking
decision making
reflection
Tasks:
Program Process:
Students will participate in reading workshop. The teacher has incorporated the Cafe and Daily Five Model for student choices during reading time
Students will select listening to reading as one of their choices at least two times per week
Students will log onto a lap top computer and connect with A-Z learning: Raz-Kids.
Students will read a self-selected story on the basis of reading and fluency levels.
Students will record their reading fluency.
Students will listen to their reading fluency and record their rate.
Students will chart their progress in an Excel graph on a computer and/or record it in a hard copy portfolio.
Students will reflect upon the changes they see over time on the basis of their graph records.
Students will have the option of working with a reading buddy to analyze and reflect upon changes in reading fluency over time.
Personalization/Differentiation
Students will have choices by means of selecting this activity during reading workshop. The model will be related to the Cafe and Daily Five Model for the structure of reading workshop. Students will select this reading fluency activity as a choice connected to listening to reading. They will be encouraged to select this activity at least two times a week during reading workshop. Strong students will be able to self select books based upon their reading levels and they will be encouraged to analyze more deeply why their reading fluency is increasing over time. Struggling students will be provided with teacher guidance and support. They will have extra opportunities and time to practice their reading skills. Literacy interventions in fluency and/or comprehension can connect directly to this activity along with collaboration and support from special education colleagues. ESL students can work with the general education teacher or ESL teacher to help them. These students will also have additional opportunities and time to build their fluency.
Real-World Connection
Students will become more fluent readers through continued practice and reflection. They will chart or graph data to help measure growth in reading fluency over time. This is important because students can become critical thinkers, they can communicate and reflect upon their reading fluency growth, and they can make their reading experiences more meaningful. It also provides essential data for parents, teachers, and administrators to measure the changes in student fluency rates over time.
Audience: Students, teachers, parents, administrators.
Adult Connection: We can bring in guest authors to demonstrate the importance of reading fluency. We can also have business community members help students reflect upon the importance of collecting and analyzing reading data and apply it to real world situations. Work will be displayed publicly by means of hard copy student portfolios or electronic student portfolios.
Assessment:
Students will be assesed by means of their reading fluency scores from Raz-Kids. They can also be assessed by running records with the teacher or by having the teacher listen to recordings of the students' reading. Teachers can assess students on the basis of their portfolio graphs and their student reflection pieces.
Resources:
Word processing software, lap top computers, headphones, Internet access, A-Z Learning Center program: Raz-Kids.
Examples:
Examples can be obtained from student portfolios and Raz-Kids student account records.
Reflection:
Overall, this program/activity should provide some excellent hands-on data for the students, teachers, parents, and administrators to analyze. It involves many aspects of best practices in teaching. It also demonstrates many of the principles that reflect twenty-first teaching and learning skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, decision making, efficient use of technology tools, and reflection. This activity will be highly engaging for students because if offers choices and promotes monitoring of self growth over time.
Put a Short Activity/Lesson/Project Title Here
Audience: Students, teachers, parents, administrators.
Adult Connection: We can bring in guest authors to demonstrate the importance of reading fluency. We can also have business community members help students reflect upon the importance of collecting and analyzing reading data and apply it to real world situations. Work will be displayed publicly by means of hard copy student portfolios or electronic student portfolios.